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Japan in the heat of Hawaii
One of the most beautiful places on the island of Oahu is this seldom-visited Japanese temple, built in the middle of the Valley of Temples. There's a complex of Buddhist temples and a cemetery set against a very spectacular landscape: a small pond surrounded by flowers that forms a huge colorful rug surrounded by rolling hills and the bizarre peaks of the Kualoa Mountains.
You can get there by car after paying the entry fee of $2. You'll drive down a A long tree-lined avenue leading to the characteristic Byodo-in Temple, a replica of a Japanese temple, with a very characteristic shape and bright colors. Inside, you'll find the largest wooden Buddha outside of Asia and it's completely covered with gold.
The surrounding hills and covered in striking white crosses to indicate that the place is actually a cemetery. The absence of other tourists makes it an oasis of genuine peace, a small piece of Japan in the heart of Hawaii. If you're on the island, you can't miss it. You can reach the Valley of the Temples directly from the resort of Kanehoe in the Windward Coast, not far from Kailua.
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